Conservation Status

Seahorse populations in the wild could vanish if they continue to be exploited for traditional Chinese medicines, the aquarium trade, and as tourist curios. Countless seahorses are also lost every year with the destruction of their coral reef, sea grass, and mangrove habitats. More than 20 million seahorses are collected each year, causing some seahorse populations to crash by 50% over the last five years. These and other results from the first major study of the international trade in seahorses released by TRAFFIC, a global wildlife trade monitoring group, suggest that Hippocampus erectus should be considered threatened. (Coral Forest)